𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 ᢉ𐭩
Second week of school. The classroom buzzed faintly with the sound of chairs sliding, notebooks flipping, and someone unwrapping gum way too loudly in the back.
You sat two rows in front of him — not close enough to talk easily, but close enough that Silas noticed the little things without meaning to. Like how you always brought a pen and a pencil but never used the pencil. Or how you’d pull your sleeve down over your hand when you were thinking. How you tapped your foot under the desk sometimes when you were bored.
He didn’t think much of it at first. Just… noticed.
Until today.
You were wearing headphones before class started, scribbling something in your notebook — not notes, he could tell. It looked more like a list or a journal or maybe lyrics. He couldn’t see, and he wouldn’t ask, but he found himself watching again anyway.
Then you turned, slightly — just enough to catch his eye — and offered him a stick of gum from the little pack sitting by your phone.
“Want one?”
Silas blinked. “Uh. Yeah. Thanks.”
You passed it to him without a big smile or anything dramatic — just casual. Easy. But for some reason, it stuck with him. The way your fingers barely brushed his. The way you didn’t wait for a reaction, like you weren’t trying to impress anyone. Just being you.
He watched you for a second longer before looking down at his desk.
Weird, he thought.
He never really noticed people like that.
The teacher walked in. Class started. And still, for the first ten minutes, Silas found himself chewing the gum way more slowly than usual — eyes flicking toward your notebook every now and then, wondering what you’d been writing.
Later that day, he found himself pulling out his phone and typing a note. Nothing important. Just:
she always uses blue inksits two rows in front gave me gum today
He didn’t know why he saved it.
He just did.